Reading Barbara Pym

"Reading Barbara Pym stakes out new territory in Pym criticism by questioning the assumptions and predispositions by which her novels have been received and judged. This book approaches the text of four of Pym's novels with a unique sensitivity and respect, discovering the special power (and the sometimes faltering) of Pym's art at the narrative level. Deborah Donato argues that the value of Pym's novels is more essential than the thematic, academic, contemporary concerns around which Pym criticism often revolves."--Jacket.